Reference Community: Duffy’s Forest EEC Eastern Ridgetop Variant & Duffy’s Forest EEC Eastern Hillslope Variant
Site: Site A - Tumbledown Dick Hill, Terrey Hills (Ridgetop)
Site B - Top of Caleyi Trail, Ingleside (Hillslope)
Soil landscape: Somersby - gently undulating to rolling rises in deeply weathered Hawkesbury Sandstone plateau. Rock outcrop is absent. Crests are broad and convex, valleys are narrow and concave. Characterised by significant presence of Red Earths and Yellow Earths.
Aspect: Site A- North-facing
Site B - South-East facing
Vegetation type: Dry sclerophyll forest was present in both Site A and Site B, though site B became taller, mesic forest furthern down the hillslope.
Flora:
Native taxa present (non-exhaustive)
Acacia floribunda
Acacia myrtifolia
Amperea xiphoclada var. xiphoclada
Anisopogon avenaceus
Astrotricha floccosa
Banksia ericifolia
Banksia marginata
Banksia serrata
Banksia spinulosa
Billardiera scandens
Boronia ledifolia
Calochilus sp.
Ceratopetalum gummiferum
Comesperma ericinum
Corymbia gummifera
Dianella caerulea
Dianella prunina
Dodonaea triquetra
Entolasia stricta
Epacris longiflora
Eucalyptus capitellata
Eucalyptus haemastoma
Eucalyptus sieberi
Gahnia clarkei
Gleichenia dicarpa
Gompholobium grandiflorum
Gonocarpus teucrioides
Grevillea buxifolia
Grevillea caleyi
Grevillea linearifolia
Grevillea sericea
Hakea gibbosa
Hakea sericea
Hibbertia bracteata
Lambertia formosa
Lasiopetalum ferrugineum
Lepidosperma laterale
Lindsaea linearis
Lomandra glauca
Lomandra longifolia
Lomandra multiflora
Lomandra obliqua
Lomatia salicifolia
Micranthemum ericoides
Opercularia aspera
Patersonia glabrata
Patersonia sericea
Persoonia levis
Phyllanthus hirtellus
Pimelea linifolia
Platysace linearifolia
Prostanthera denticulata
Pteridium esculentum
Pultenaea daphnoides
Pultenaea elliptica
Pultenaea flexilis
Pultenaea polifolia
Pultenaea stipularis
Rhytidosperma procumbens
Smilax glyciphylla
Telopea speciosissima
Themeda triandra
Xylomelum pyriforme
Additional native taxa known to occur in Bilgola Plateau’s Duffy’s Forest EEC
Acacia parramattensis
Acacia suaveolens
Angophora costata
Breynia oblongifolia
Brunoniella pumilio
Entolasia marginata
Eucalyptus umbra
Eustrephus latifolius
Hakea dactyloides
Hardenbergia violacea
Leptospermum polygalifolium
Lobelia purpurascens
Marsdenia rostrata
Polyscias sambucifolia ssp. long leaflets
Zieria smithii
Additional native taxa expected to have ocurred in Bilgola Plateau’s Duffy’s Forest EEC
Acacia ulicifolia
Allocasuarina littoralis
Austrostipa pubescens
Bossiaea obcordata
Cyathochaeta diandra
Dampiera stricta
Dillwynia retorta
Epacris pulchella
Gompholobium grandiflorum
Hovea linearis
Kunzea ambigua
Lindsaea microphylla
Persoonia pinifolia
Petrophile pulchella
Tetrarrhena juncea
Xanthorrhoea media
Xanthosia tridentata
Caley’s Grevillea (Grevillea caleyi) in flower
Woody Pear (Xylomelum pyriforme) in the background
A grassy under-storey with dappled light coming through the open canopy
Red Waratah (Telopea speciossimia)
A Hibbertia (Hibbertia sp.) with Devil’s Twine (Cassytha glabella)
Pink Spider Flower (Grevillea sericea)
A Duffy’s Forest ridgetop woodland vegetation community
Blue Lomandra (Lomandra glauca)
Long-Leaf Smoke Bush (Conospermum longifolium)
Mountain Devil (Lambertia formosa) just about to flower
Red Spider Flower (Grevillea speciosa)
Heath Milkwort (Comesperma ericinum)
A Duffy’s Forest Hillslope vegetation community
Another Milkwort in flower (Comesperma volubile), though this time twining.
A Coral Fern, likely Gleichenia dicarpa, though quite a nuanced species to key out!
Rusty Petals (Lasiopetalum ferrugineum)
Fuchsia Heath (Epacris longiflora) flowering from the edge of the path.